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The Kansas City Chiefs have officially decided upon a winner in the battle for long snapper to replace longtime veteran Thomas Gafford. James Winchester was the last man standing after the team released Andrew East.
Gafford signed with the Chicago Bears earlier this offseason, and it was clear that special teams coach Dave Toub had a major decision between two inexperienced players. He elaborated on the decision to go with Winchester on Monday.
"It was a long process, but it was a good process," said Toub on the decision. "We really did our due diligence with it. We really like both of those guys. We all think that both of them could be an NFL-caliber guy and we just felt like (James) Winchester just had the edge at the end.
"He’s got all the tools, he’s got a little bit more velocity on the ball – it’s very little, but it makes a difference when (Dustin) Colquitt can get the ball in his hand and he doesn’t have to rush because if we do get a rush, it really would have to speed him up if he had a slow snap – so it really came down to that."
In a game where milliseconds provide the difference in every facet, it's not surprising the Chiefs made their decision in this way.